California Sunshine

Day 25:

Agua Dulce

2,195 Miles To Go

Belle

Alone in the cabin, I stare at my phone, unsure of what to do while trying to process everything Grinder has told me. My mind keeps looping back to one thing. Nova wasn’t cheating on me. And yet, I still can’t make myself get up. He might not have been cheating on me, and I may have overreacted, but it showed me how raw I still am from Bryce’s betrayal.

The silence, and my train of thought, is broken by my message chime.

RACHEL: Am I getting dressed to kick some ass or go to class?

My finger hovers over the reply button. My usual go-to question when faced with relationship issues is What Would Rachel Do? Probably go shopping, get a mani-pedi, and hit the clubs for a girl’s night out. Except there are no clubs on the PCT, and my nails wouldn’t last a day out here. Besides, that’s the question I kept asking with Bryce, and look where it got me. No, it’s time I figured out What Would Lizzy Do?

At Deep Creek, I told Bats the trail was giving me the chance to figure out what life I wanted for myself. It still can, but not if I leave, and my gut is telling me to stay. So what do I do about the guys? Because if I stay, my trip is tied to theirs, at least in the short term. My next two resupply boxes will be waiting for me at Hikertown. I’ll need Bats to carry half of my supplies or I’ll never make it to Kennedy Meadows. But after that . . .

Logistics aside, this is about me and Nova. And as much as I hate admitting Grinder’s right, he is. Nova is a nice guy. He’s fun to be with. Easygoing. Interested in me, not only my body. And he has a genuine desire to help me get over Bryce, even if he doesn’t get anything in return. I’d be stupid to throw that away for a misunderstanding. So what would Lizzy do? For starters, I drain the rest of my coffee. Because damn, that’s good. Then I stand, take a deep breath, and head for the door.

As I step through the doorway, three sets of eyes turn toward me, the same question written in their expressions. Will I stay? I bite my lip, sucking in a steadying breath as I match each of their gazes in turn.

Stepping down off the porch, I cross to Grinder and offer him my hand to shake. “Hi. I’m Elizabeth. I hear you’re heading to Canada?”

A grin creeps across Grinder’s chiseled face. “We are. I think you’ve met the rest of my friends.”

I snicker and shrug. “Yeah. They seem pretty nice.”

“Nah. Complete assholes,” Grinder jokes. Then he takes my hand in his. Something stirs in my gut. A twitter of excitement over the start of something new. “But I’d be happy to have you join us.”

Bats nudges Grinder out of the way, also taking my hand in his in a repeat of our moment at Mission Creek. “You know I want you with us. And if either of these two piss you off, let me know. I’ll gladly punch them in the junk for you.”

I laugh for a moment before insisting, “Don’t do that. I don’t think I could handle being the reason one of you hurt the other. No matter the intent. You’re best friends. I’m just a girl you guys met at the start of the trail.”

Bats leans closer, his musky scent filling my nose. “You will never be just a girl, Liz.”

My cheeks warm at his words, and I resist the urge to hug Bats. For now, at least. Turning toward Nova, he’s beaming with renewed hope. “Can you give us a few minutes?” I ask Bats and Grinder.

“I’ll get another pot of coffee started,” Grinder tells me as he turns toward the door.

Bats grabs the small bag of groceries and follows. “We got stuff for pancakes. Should take fifteen, maybe twenty minutes.”

I nod, understanding his actual meaning. Take all the time we need.

As the door to the cabin closes behind his friends, Nova runs a hand through his messy blond hair, giving me a sheepish look. “Lizzy, I am so . . . Oomph!”

I dash across the short distance between us, wrapping him tight in my arms. His vanilla and coconut scent washes over me, comforting me. “You have nothing to be sorry about, Nova. I should have trusted you. But I’d opened up my Instagram feed again, and there was another comment from Bryce. I’d had enough of his cheating ass. So when I saw . . . you know . . .”

“Another girl kissing me?”

I wince. “I guess I kind of lost it. But I know that’s not you. You wouldn’t do that to me.”

Nova leans back to catch my gaze in his. “Hey. I get it. Getting cheated on sucks. Big time. And that was only, what? Two and half months ago? It doesn’t sound like you had much time to process the hurt before coming out here.”

“Not really,” I admit. “I was kind of busy with school and packing.”

“So yeah, I can see why you jumped to that conclusion. I’m just glad Grinder was able to get you to listen to the truth.”

“Kayden, I am so . . .”

Nova cuts me off, repeating my own words back to me. “You have nothing to be sorry about, Lizzy.” Our lips meet, and it’s like a hundred butterflies take flight in my stomach, surrounded by rays of sunshine pushing back all of the darkness Bryce left in my heart, making room for new emotions. Better emotions. Emotions I’m ready for. When we break our kiss, he holds me tight. “I will never hurt you like that.”

“I know,” I tell him, believing it with all my heart. “Thank you.”

I kiss him again, not as long, but twice as sweet. There’s a tingle in my lips, like our kiss is sealing some pact between us to never hurt each other like Bryce hurt me. To do everything to help me move on from Bryce, and put that ugly chapter behind me for good. In my heart, I know Nova’s going to do everything he can to keep that promise too.

***

The smell of buttery pancakes and sizzling bacon greets us as Nova and I enter the cabin hand in hand. Bats looks up from the frying pan and nods once, as if to say, Good choice.

Grinder is busy setting plates out, but pauses to pull a chair out for me, my cup full of steaming coffee. Two plates piled high with breakfast as the guys finish setting the table and sit down. We settle into a comfortable silence as we dig into the food, grateful for something more than oatmeal and energy bars to start our day.

Sitting here with the guys, I’m struck by how lucky I am to have met them. Their pace might be faster than I wanted, but the company is far better than I could have hoped for. I’m traveling with three great guys who make me feel safe. Capable of not just finishing the trail, but finding the answers I’m looking for while I’m out here. I don’t know if I can put Bryce behind me for good yet, but if there’s another flare up, I know they’ll be here to support me. All of them. To help me hold it together. And if I can’t, they’ll be there to lift me back up. To put my feet back on the trail moving forward.

“So are we all good, princess?” Grinder asks, but there’s no bite in his nickname for me anymore.

I clutch Nova’s hand and answer with a smile, “Yeah. We are.”

Grinder smirks. Damn it. Even his smirk is growing on me. “Good. We need to get going if we want to be in Hikertown in four days.”

“Oh?”

Grinder looks at Nova with raised brows. “She doesn’t know?”

“Don’t know what?” I ask.

Nova shrugs. “It’s no big deal. Don’t worry about it.”

I squint at him, but he just shoves another bite of pancakes into his mouth.

“It’s his birthday in four days,” Grinder tells me.

“It is?” I ask, turning to Nova for confirmation.

“It’s nothing,” he replies, reaching out to take my hand in his. “I’m happy being out here with you three. I don’t need you guys doing anything special for me.”

As the guys clean up breakfast, I head to my room to get ready to go. All the while, the minx in my head is back, suggesting there might be something special I can do for Nova’s birthday. I may finally be ready for what she’s suggesting.

***